Who Was Shane Tamura, Gunman Who Unleashed Hell, Killing 4, Including Cop?
On July 28, 2025, a 27-year-old Las Vegas resident named Shane Devon Tamura drove to Midtown Manhattan and opened fire inside a high‑rise at 345 Park Avenue. Four people were killed—including an off‑duty NYPD officer—and several others were injured before Tamura shot and killed himself on the 33rd floor.
Police say
Tamura carried an M4 assault‑style
rifle, body armor, and wore a bulletproof vest.
Surveillance footage shows him firing in the lobby first, then taking the
elevator up to a higher floor.
Tamura
had no known criminal history, but authorities confirm he had a documented
history of mental illness.
He
was previously a high school football standout in California (Granada
Hills Charter), though he never played professionally. Crucially, in a multi-page
suicide note found at the scene, he blamed the NFL for giving him CTE
(chronic traumatic encephalopathy), citing former player Terry Long, and
asked for his brain to be studied for it.
He
appeared to target the NFL offices housed in the same building but may
have mistakenly accessed a different floor.
A 2015 high school football video
featuring Tamura giving a motivational post-game speech—urging teammates,
“Don’t hold your heads down…”—has surged in popularity amid speculation of
symbolic meaning.
Social media and news outlets spotlight the
contrast between his former athletic promise and his tragic endpoint, as well
as the potential connection between his grievances and the location of the
crime.